Jat stir: Gurgaon remains on high alert

The second round of agitation demanding reservation for the Jat community in education and jobs did not create a significant impact in Gurgaon.

The second round of agitation demanding reservation for the Jat community in education and jobs did not create a significant impact in Gurgaon amid strong police presence on Sunday .

Large number of police personnel were deployed at intersections that protesters blocked in the first round of the stir (Parveen Kumar/HT Photo)

Taking a cue from February’s protest, the police deployed a large force across the city to counter any incidents of violence. Major intersections and areas that protesters blocked in the first round of the stir were specially taken care of. Police personnel equipped with combat gear were seen at the railway station, bus stations and other public places throughout the day.

Members of the pro-quota associations, under the umbrella organisation Akhil Bhartiya Jat Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti, held dharnas at some places.

“We will protest peacefully. We can intensify it if our demands are not met,” Vijay Khatri, a leader of Akhil Bhartiya Jat Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti, said, after a meeting at Haryana Bhawan in Delhi.

A group of Jat leaders called on Gurgaon deputy commissioner TL Satyaprakash on Sunday morning and handed over a memorandum listing the charter of demands.

“We took the memorandum from the Jat leaders. There was no blockade or violence in the city,” Satyaprakash said.

Forces equipped with combat gear were seen at the railway station, bus stations and other public places on Sunday. (Parveen Kumar/HT Photo)

Issuing an appeal for peaceful protests, the Gurgaon district administration had imposed prohibitory orders under section 144 of CrPC for 60 days from Friday.

In February, protests demanding quota for the Jat community in education and jobs left at least 30 people dead and more than 320 injured across Haryana. Property worth crores was damaged in arson during the agitation that left the state paralysed for nearly two weeks.

Though there was no violence in Gurgaon, protesters blocked several important roads. Trains on the Delhi-Jaipur route via Gurgaon were cancelled because of track blockades. The Delhi-Jaipur railway route was shut for several days.

As a precautionary measure this time, the police monitored social media websites and free messaging mobile applications such as WhatsApp through which rumours and calls for violence generally spread .